Peach Sonker

In Pamela Goyan Kittler and Kathryn P. Sucher's book Food and Culture, they describe North Carolinan sonkers as "a deep-dish fruit or sweet potato pie made with breadcrumbs or biscuit dough or pie crust—there is no agreement on how to prepare it."

This version is made with biscuit dough and a lattice crust. One thing's for sure, Sonkers are meant for a crowd, so butter up a big pan and get baking!

Procedures

1

Set oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 400°F. Add flour, 1/3 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse several times to mix. Add butter pieces and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, 6 to 8 one-second pulses. Transfer mixture to a large bowl.

2

In a small bowl whisk together eggs and milk. Add liquid to flour mixture. Stir with a spoon until well incorporated and a sticky dough begins to form. Turn dough out on a very well floured surface, sprinkle the top with flour, and knead lightly until you have a soft, workable dough. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes.

3

Butter a 9- by 13-inch glass or metal baking dish and set aside. Cut off 2/3 of the dough and return remaining dough to refrigerator. Sprinkle top of dough lightly with flour then cover with a large sheet of plastic wrap and roll out into a rectangle that overlaps the edges of the baking dish by about 2 inches. Lay rolled out dough into the dish, press into the bottom and along the sides.

4

Add sliced peaches to a large bowl. Dissolve cornstarch in 2 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Pour mixture over peaches and toss to coat. Transfer peaches to dough-lined pan. In a small bowl mix together light brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg then sprinkle mixture over peaches. Dot with butter pieces.

5

Divide remaining dough in half, turn it out on a very well floured surface, sprinkle top lightly with flour then cover with a large sheet of plastic wrap and roll out to a large sheet approximately 13 inches long and approximately 1/4 inch thick. Cut the dough into 4 long strips and arrange evenly across the length of the dish (do not press into the sides yet). Repeat rolling out process with remaining dough, this time rolling out a wider sheet that's approximately 9 inches long. Cut the dough into 5 strips. Weave the lattice crust together (for a visual guide, check out this Sweet Technique slideshow). Sprinkle crust with remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar.

6

Bake until crust is golden brown and peaches are bubbly, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool for 10 to 20 minutes then serve.